Tokyo Mew Mew, Once More
by Miko1725
Summary: A new enemy has surfaced and the girls are need, once again, to save Earth: Ryou/Ichigo pairing
1. Prologue

**Chapter 1: Prologue**

_This was my original Tokyo Mew Mew Fanfiction that I wrote back in 2005; I've decided to go back a re-work it now that my writing has improved and the story has sunk in a little more. Enjoy the rewrite!_

Tokyo Mew Mew Once More: Prologue

Her alarm clock landed with a clunk on the bedroom floor. Ichigo sat up, groggy, and swung her legs out of bed. These last couple of weeks had been heavenly—no aliens to battle, no café to work in... Granted, Masaya had left for London, England, but he did call her nearly every day; he was expected back at the end of summer break.

"Aoyama-kun…" she whispered softly. She reached up and touched the little bell and collar around her neck. Now halfway to sixteen, Ichigo felt compelled to take a look back on the last year of her life: she'd changed so much since she'd meet Akasaka-sama and Shirogane; she had her life more or less figured out; she was in love with her Aoyama-kun and had done well in school despite all the other things going on in her life that year.

Sitting at her vanity table, Ichigo began to put her hair up in its traditional pigtails. Truthfully, she had nowhere to go that particular day, nothing to do so she released the tuft of hair in her hand and began to brush it out. Maybe she'd just let it hang down today.

"Ichigo honey," whispered her mother opening the door a crack.

"I'm up Mama."

"You have a couple of guests waiting for you in the family room," she said with a smile. Who, she asked standing up. Sakura shrugged and left the room simply asking her daughter to hurry as to not keep them waiting.

Out in the family room, Keiichiro and Ryou waited patiently for Ichigo to come and join them. "Do you think she'll be willing to come back?"

"That depends," Keiichiro began. "Are you going to tease her mercilessly, insult her, and otherwise irritate her?" There was a pause. "Ryou?"

"I'm thinking." Keiichiro chuckled softly and shook his head. Ryou seemed to be a little on edge, almost nervous. They'd already gone to see Retasu and Mint the other day, and Zakuro was away at the moment doing an extended show in Germany for the summer; Purin was on the list for later in the day. They hadn't seen the girls for the past couple of weeks; there had just been some unspoken code amongst everyone that a break was in order. It was time to pull back together though. Something odd was still going on, and they needed to be prepared.

"Shirogane... Akasaka-sama? What are you doing here?"


	2. Back to Work

Chapter 01: A Visitor from the Past

"Mint, are you planning to just sip on tea all day?" Ichigo glared at her friend as Mint simply peeked at her with one eye as she sipped. Retasu laughed; it was just like old times:

The café had reopened its doors to a massive wave of customers that week. Apparently that little café with its cakes and teas was far more popular than any of them had realized. As usual, Ichigo served, Mint sipped tea, and Retasu and Purin broke things.

"Come on Girls," Shirogane broke in. "We'll have time to catch up later this weekend." He handed an order to Ichigo and the group dispersed. As Ryou walked back towards the kitchen, he caught the glimpse of a man, in about his fifties, reading a newspaper, a cup of tea on the table in front of him. He couldn't help but feel as though they'd met before.

"Here's your order sir." Ichigo sat the plate on the table, bowed politely and began to scoot away.

"Tell me," said the man without looking back up. "Does a Dr. Keiichiro Akasaka work here?" She paused.

"And who are you, may I ask?" Ryou had been listening and was now walking back towards the man with peaked curiosity.

"Amatsu, Dr. Shouzo Amatsu." Amatsu looked up at Shirogane and stared for a moment. "You… You're not by any chance the son of the late Dr. Shirogane are you?" Ryou stiffened.

"I am. How do you know Keiichiro and my father?" Amatsu laughed.

"Your father and I were… how you say… rivals in the field of science. After that horrible accident, well, it was rather boring not having any one to compete with. Anyway, I was in town and heard that your father's former aide was baking cakes. I just had to see for myself."

"Dr. Amatsu, how nice to see you again." Keiichiro's calm, collect voice was the only thing in that moment that was preventing Ryou from punching the man in front of him.

"Dr. Akasaka," he said with a polite nod. "Let's cut to the chase. I came for the information."

"I am aware of that, but I cannot release it. That information was the hard work of my late friend and mentor. It remains with me. I'm sorry, but I have customers to tend to." Keiichiro bowed politely and returned to the kitchen; Ryou followed. From the corner of the room the girls watched as Dr. Amatsu stood calmly, collected his things, and left in a hurry. The girls only briefly exchanged glances before racing to the kitchen door:

"He's come for the information on Project Mew Mew."

"Ryou, calm down. We have all the information stored in the computer and in our minds. He's not going to get to either. Truthfully, I'm surprised you remembered him."

"How could I not? The man was a complete jerk back then. Still is if you ask me."

"Here," said Keiichiro with a smile. He held out a pastry. "I believe table six is waiting for this." Ryou sighed and walked over to the door.

On the other side of the door, four young girls were so busy arguing over who was in who's way that they neglected to hear Ryou approach the door. FWAP! The door swung open and the foursome found themselves in a pile on the floor. Ryou stared down at them for a moment before laughing in amusement.

"Next time, you can just come in," smiled Keiichiro from the open kitchen door.

"Ryou darling, come in for lunch now please." The young boy was leaning against a tree in the front yard, motionless. The woman walked towards him, her long golden hair flowing behind her. She knelt beside her son and brushed some dirt from his cheek. "It happened again, huh?" He leaned into her, crying softly. She held him close, telling him it would be alright. They just don't understand you, she whispered. "You're so smart, so talented... and so young. It can be hard for other kids that are older than you to understand." I'm fine, he mumbled. She kissed him on the forehead gently. Come on in for lunch, she said.

As they walked towards the house, the ground began to shake. The boy's mother vanished from his sight and the home in front of him became engulfed in flames. He cried out for his parents and tried to run towards the house, but found himself being held back. He was helpless to do anything. He kept peering into the flames which were growing hotter and brighter... he could see something...

Ryou shot upright in bed. "Damn it," he muttered. As if it wasn't bad enough to have lived through it, he had to dream about it too. He stood and took a swig of water. Four in the morning, he grumbled. He fumbled in the darkness for some clothes. It seemed like it would be a good time to take a long walk.

The dream always altered ever so slightly each time he had it. This time he'd been almost confident she had really been there. He'd felt her, smelled her... and once again HE had been absent. Ryou scoffed. Why was this dream upsetting him so much? After all, he'd been having some variation of it or another for years now. What was the thing he couldn't see...?

"Shirogane-san?" He heard the familiar voice to the left. Ryou was surprised to turn and see he was at Ichigo's home. Her mother stood at the front door, newspaper in hand. He'd been so lost in thought he'd complete lost track of time.

"Good morning," he said dumbly. "How are you?"

"I'm well, thank you. Are you alright?" Ryou had not considered how he must have looked after wandering all over the city for so many hours; he smiled.

"I'm fine, thank you."

"Well, if you aren't in a hurry, you are welcome to join Ichigo and myself for breakfast." Her kind smile reminded him so much of his own mother's. Without realizing it, Ryou accepted the invitation and entered the Momomiya household. "Ichigo should be up soon," she said heading for the kitchen. "Make yourself at home." Ryou wandered around the family room until a picture caught his eye. It was a very young Ichigo, smiling up at the camera with her crimson red hair. In spite of himself, he smiled.

"Good morning Mama." He heard her approaching. "Eek! Shirogane, what are you doing here?"

"Nice to see you too; cute strawberry pajamas by the way." He scowled at her, putting the picture back.

"Ichigo dear, good morning," smiled her mother. "I invited Shirogane-san for breakfast. Speaking of which, it's ready. Let's go eat."

"What were you doing out here this morning," asked Ichigo as she walked to work with him no more than an hour later.

"Just walking," he muttered in his usual matter-of-fact way. He stopped, realizing she had. "Oy, Ichigo," he said a little more gently. "It's nothing, really." He reached out and brushed a stray strand of hair out of her face. Ichigo blushed. "Let's go the long way through the park," he suggested, looking away from her. "They can handle things for a while."

Ichigo looked up at her companion. Shirogane, he never revealed to her how he felt about anything, and she knew this would be no exception. Still, he seemed to find some sort of comfort in her presence. She walked along beside him in silence the whole way to the café, more than happy to at least be what he needed her to be for him.


	3. Friend or Foe

Chapter 02: Friend or Foe?

"Akasaka-sama," cried Retasu running through the café's massive front doors. "There's a woman passed out outside. She needs help."

Keiichiro rushed out of the café behind her to discover a young woman, pale and drenched in sweat, within a few feet of them. Keiichiro knelt beside her, brushing her black curls from her face. She's lovely, he thought to himself. The woman reacted to his touch by slowly opened her eyes. She tried to speak, but seemed too weak. Carefully, Keiichiro took her into his arms.

"Come on Retasu, let's get her inside."

Keiichiro scooped the young woman up in his arms and carried her gently into the café.

"I'm fine," she murmured, struggling weakly against his hold. Keiichiro just smiled gently and shook his head. Stubborn, he thought. Retasu rushed ahead and got the door open for them before continuing up the stairs to the guest room.

"Mint, outside by the building, go grab her things and bring them upstairs."

"What's going on," Pudding asked nervously, "is she ok?"

"I'm fine," the woman muttered again.

"She'll be just fine, she just needs to rest in a cool environment for a while.

"I said I'm fine." The woman managed to loosen herself from Keiichiro's grip but promptly fell back into his arms.

"Come on," he said gently. "We're friends here. Just go upstairs, rest, and then you can be on your way. With one final sigh the woman relented.

"Well well, look at you two!" Ichigo scowled at Mint before excusing herself to change for work. Ryou just shook his head and headed for the kitchen:

"He's not in there," Retasu said softly.

"Where is he then?"

"Upstairs with Akihito-sama…"

"Who's Akihito?"

"Her name is Ayame, and she is our guest." Keiichiro came down the staircase, smiling in his normal, pleasant way: "the poor woman is terribly sick and never should have been out in this kind of heat; luckily Retasu was out there cleaning up and saw her. She'll stay here till she recovers."

"Are you sure that's wise? It's quite a coincidence that she showed up the day after Amatsu."

"I didn't say we wouldn't keep an eye on her."

Ryou simply shook his head and left in the direction of the lab; Keiichiro sighed. It was just like Ryou to disappear into himself when he didn't get his way. There was no debate, he was not going to turn a sick woman out onto the street, spy or no. He turned to find a red head flying around tables taking orders.

"Ichigo."

"Hai?"

"Please be a huge help to me and take care of Akihito-san upstairs. She's sick and needs our assistance; Mint can handle the costumers down here."

"WHAT!" Mint nearly spat out her tea. Ichigo couldn't help but laugh as she bounded up the stairs to check on Ayame.

"Akihito-san?" When no answer came, Ichigo slowly cracked the door slightly to the spare room: it was just as sparse as Ryou's room: a bed; a dresser; a desk. A duffle bag lay neatly on a little bench at the foot of the bed and a pair of women's shoes rested neatly beside it. She was very pretty with fluffy dark curls and freckled skin. She appeared to be maybe five foot three or so in height and hand long, slender arms rested on top of the bed's comforter. The noise from the door jostled her awake and Ayame rolled over to her side:

"Hello there."

"Hi. Umm, Akasaka-sama wanted to know if you needed anything. My name is Ichigo, by the way."

"Ichigo, that's a pretty name." Ayame smiled and lay back again. "Come, sit; keep me company. I'm not keeping you from work am I?"

"Oh no, he asked me to tend to you today."

"He's very sweet."

"Oh yes, Akasaka-sama is the best! He's always treated all of us like little sisters."

Ayame laughed: "I hope he treats you better than I treated my little sisters!"

Stay here. I love you. Those were among the last words his mother spoke to him and even though her voice was fading with time, her words still haunted his mind. For Amatsu to have made so light of his parents deaths was unforgivable. Frustrated, he slammed his fist into the desk. Why now; why was Amatsu back, after all this time?

Baka, of course he's back. Ryou ran his fingers through his hair and sighed. Project Mew Mew had become public they day that the girls had accidently ended up on live television. It was certain to only be a matter of time before his father's rival came around look for what he lacked in the research.

Ryou sat at the desk and rested his head on his hands. He had to pull himself together and get back up there. Just because Keiichiro was seemingly okay with the stray that had wandered into their home didn't mean that he had to be. Whoever she was, it was just too much of a coincidence that she'd shown up the day after Amatsu appeared, and Ryou wasn't going to take any chances. I guess it's up to me to keep an eye on things, he thought sullenly.

"Shirogane?"

"Ichigo, aren't you supposed to be with Ayame?"

"She's sleeping. You ok? You always come down here alone when you're upset."

Ryou snorted and turned away from her: "if you know I'm upset why are you bothering me? Just go back to doing whatever it is Keiichiro needs you to do." With a sigh, Ichigo turned to go.

"Oy, Ichigo… just trust me on this… keep an eye on Ayame."

Ichigo quietly searched Ryou's eyes but only found concern and worry. He must feel strongly about this, she though. Ayame seemed perfectly nice enough and Ichigo just couldn't see her working for Amatsu.

Before she could leave, the ground around them began to shake and they heard a shriek from upstairs.

"Maybe we should close early today Akasaka-sama? It's been raining for the last two hours and I think I heard some rumbling a few minutes ago."

Keiichiro looked at Mint and smiled: "now now, I think we can hold out the remaining three hours. The sun may come out again; you know how summer storms are."

Just then the rumbling came again, only louder and closer. Keiichiro's smile faded and he glanced out the closest window. Something wasn't quite right. He could almost feel the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.

"Get down, now!"


	4. A New Enemy Rises

Chapter 03:

"Get down, now!"

The ground rumbled furiously and a huge chunk of the wall collapsed inward; smoke and debris filled the room as the girls stood, coughing; laughter mingled with the haze in the room.

"What's going on?"

Ichigo and Ryou rushed around the corner to catch a glimpse of their attacker:

She was short, petite, with excessively long flowing hair, green as grass. Her eyes were a sharp purple and she had the slightest of a devious smile on her pale face. She floated to the ground and walked over to Keiichiro:

"Where is the girl?"

"We don't know what you're talking about!" Ichigo shouted, grabbing for her pendant.

The woman simply laughed and moved closer to the group: "I am trying to spare you pathetic humans for now, but I'm losing my patience quickly. Now, where is the girl?"

"Here I am Katja, leave them alone." Ayame stood firmly at the top of the stairs.

"You shouldn't have run away, little fox. We need you." Katja flew towards Ayame before a surprise attack from Mint's arrow hit her square in the back.

"You," she turned but found herself surrounded by all the mews, transformed and ready to fight. "Feh, another day Kitsune. With ease, she disappeared as quickly as she'd shown up. Ayame sighed and collapsed onto the ground, Keiichiro rushing towards her.

"Are you okay, Akihito-san?"

"No, no I'm not." She was shaking now, tears rolling down her cheeks: "please, please don't let them take me again! I'm begging you…" Keiichiro smiled as he stroked her curls:

"Don't worry, as long as you stay here we will protect you."

"On the condition you tell us who you are and what that thing wants with you," Ryou added, still uncomfortable with the woman's presence. Ayame shuddered but nodded.

"Fair enough: It all started a year ago…"

I had been finishing up my Linguistics Degree from a university in America when it all started. I'd woken up one morning to find a small tattoo on my wrist. It was odd because I certainly didn't remember getting a tattoo, but I chalked it up to a wild college night with my friends and didn't really give it much more thought. It was shortly thereafter that Katja began to appear:

"_What do you want from me?"_

"_You have to come with me, you don't know what you are; I can help you."_

Her words confused me, so I ignored her and continued with my studies. But she was right, I was changing: I found I was much more agile; more sensitive to sounds and smells; faster than usual. Finally, the semester had ended and I had received my Master's in Linguistics. Katja had been absent for weeks now and I was beginning to finally let my guard down. That was a mistake.

Around nine or so in the evening a month ago, I came home to her small apartment only to be kidnapped by a mysterious man in black. When I woke up, I found myself in some kind of laboratory. The man had introduced himself as Shouzo Amatsu and informed me the choice of whether or not to participate in his experiment was nonexistent.

"_You see that tattoo on your wrist?" Amatsu paced around her cell, smiling contently: "it means that your DNA is compatible with my experiment. If this works you will find that you have abilities beyond your wildest dreams, won't that be exciting?"_

"_In short, I'll be a freak," she spat out."_

"_If that's how you choose to look at it, young lady."_

The experiments had been brutal, but he never seemed to find the results he was looking for. Finally, yesterday, I managed to escape the cell and grabbed what little I had on hand. I'd made a break for it, managing to make it as far as the café before collapsing from pain and exhaustion.

"You poor thing," Retasu whispered.

"So that's why he's looking for our half of the research," Keiichiro mused. "He couldn't transform her."

"Someone want to tell me exactly why I'm a test subject; transform me into what?"

Ryou and Keiichiro looked at each other a moment:

"It's a long story," Keiichiro began…

"I'm not going anywhere," she retorted.

"Fair enough, I suppose." Ryou walked away, running his hand through his blonde hair. "My father began this research years ago, discovering that certain humans possessed the potential to be so much more. Amatsu was a rival in the studies, always did resent that Father got so much further ahead on the project," here Ryou paused and took a deep breath, "my parents died in a lab explosion and much of my Father's research was lost. Keiichiro and I were able to recall enough to get Project Mew Mew back on track. That's when extraterrestrials began showing up, fusing alien DNA with animals and people here on Earth. We were forced to put the project into action by sending out the signal that would indicate who out there was a Mew."

"I see, so all of you here are genetically altered humans who fight evil aliens and defend our planet," Ayame looked skeptically.

"Got a better explanation," Mint snapped.

"Anyway," Ryou continued, "seems Amatsu somehow teamed up with an other-worldly being and searched for one of the humans with special abilities."

"We could complete the transformation for you," Keiichiro said gently.

"No thanks, I'm content as I am," she replied a little too quickly. Keiichiro sighed and scooped her back up into his arms.

"Put me down," she grumbled. Keiichiro simply shook his head and carried the woman back up to the room.

"I'll be out first thing in the morning," she said sullenly. "No sense in dragging you all into this mess."

Keiichiro put her down and shook his head again: "and go where? If you go home they will find you. At least here you can be protected and safe." She bit her lip and Keiichiro knew he'd struck a nerve. She was obviously a proud woman who didn't like accepting help from others, but he also knew he couldn't let her leave that café: they were willing to kidnap and experiment on Ayame… what else would they do to the poor thing? He wasn't sure why, but in that moment he felt a surge of protectiveness and vowed silently that no harm would come to Ayame while he breathed.


	5. A Sixth Mew?

Chapter Three:

"Shirogane, I'm confused," said Mint. "I thought it was just the five of us."

"Yeah," Purin added, "does that mean there could be more out there like us?"

"It's probable," he said after thinking a moment. He leaned back against one of the café tables and closed his eyes. "Our scans only found you five, but with Ayame being in America at the time, we never would have detected her."

"It's not fair," Ichigo pouted, "she doesn't have to do this, so why do we?"

"Because, Baka-Strawberry, the five of you don't need her. You're plenty strong on your own."

"But she could at least help us at the café," she whined.

"Did you see the way Akasaka-sama looked at Akihito-san?" It was a very un-Zakuro like thing to say, so the hint was taken to drop the subject.

"Hai," chirped Purin, "he has a crush on her for sure!"

"Don't be silly," chided Ryou. "Tell Keiichiro I'll be in the basement."

"Ryou, what are you doing?"

"Ayame… she's genetically compatible with the Red Fox."

"Hmm, that's why Katja called her a Kitsune… so they were able to get that far…"

"Yes," Ryou continued, "how should we proceed?"

"We can't force her to finish the transformation Ryou."

"She'll just be targeted over and over again. It's for her benefit, not ours."

"That may very well be, but…"

"Keiichiro, somehow we have to convince Ayame to become a Mew."

"So the little fox has escaped the hole?"

"Afraid so… Those pesky girls from the news last year were there to protect her. Seems she got in good with the enemies, Shouzo."

Dr. Amatsu paced the floor, slightly irritated, but more amused.

"Well, I suppose I'll just have to kill two birds with one stone—Katja, why don't you take Leo out for a walk?"

Katja smiled wickedly: "sounds like fun."

"Good morning, Akihito-san," Keiichiro greeted as the young woman descended the staircase; she smiled pleasantly in return and sat at one of the nearby tables. "Would you care for any tea this morning? I was just about to pour a cup of Jasmine for myself." His smile was so genuinely cheerful, Ayame found herself blushing.

"Sure," she answered, "that sounds lovely."

"So, what is it you plan to do with a degree in Linguistics eventually?"

She took a sip of tea: "I study History and use Linguistics to help garner any information that the Archeologists can't. Right now, my personal mission is to find the Mother Language, the language that all modern language stems from. It's a pipe dream, but it gives me something to do. So, tell me, how does a scientist ended up owning a bakery?"

Keiichiro seemed a little startled by her knowledge but Ayame just laughed: "that Ichigo is a real chatter-box, I hope she didn't tell me something I shouldn't know…"

Me too, he thought a little nervously; "Ah, well, I still work on various projects with genetics on my own time, but baking is to me like linguistics is to you: a passion. Not many people get the chance to pursue their passions… I'm certainly glad we both have."

"Morning Akasaka-sama! Ayame-chan!" Ichigo bounded happily through the door of the café.

"What has you so excited today, Strawberry," asked Ryou as he came down the stairs to the main floor:

"Masaya-kun, he's in town for the weekend to visit! Please please PLEASE can I have the weekend off?"

"Absolutely not!"

"Why not?"

"Weekends are the busiest time of the week, plus it's summer so we're even busier. You can see Aoyama after work…"

"You're so MEAN! I work so hard and you can't even let me have this one tiny request?"

"Shirogane?"

They both turned to Keiichiro and Ayame and each blushed bright red, having forgotten about their audience.

"I would be more than happy to work her shift so that Ichigo-chan can go out with her boyfriend." She smiled warmly. "I would be devastated if my boyfriend came into town and I couldn't see him!"

"Ayame-chan, thank you thank you thank you!" Ichigo bounded happily out of the café before Ryou could even deny Ayame her offer.

"I'll find a uniform for you, he muttered.

"Don't mind them," Keiichiro said with a sigh, "this is just a normal day."

"He must really like her," Ayame mused. Keiichiro laughed. "No seriously! I mean, obviously he's totally jealous that her boyfriend is in town. Maybe he thought distance would break them up and now his hopes are dashed."

"You, Akihito-san, are a very wise woman."

"Please, just call me Ayame."

Ichigo practically danced out of the café and down the street towards Masaya's house; it had been over a month since he'd last held and kissed her and she was more than ready to make up for lost time. She paused briefly in front of a store window to adjust her hair and clothes before calmly continuing her walk.

The only thing was that it was going to be so hard to say goodbye again when the weekend was over… it would be just like losing him all over again. Part of Ichigo thought going there would be a bad idea, but she just couldn't seem to stop herself from wanting to see him so badly. When she finally rounded the corner of his block, she paused:

"Ichigo!" Masaya came running over to her, leaving the pretty blonde girl sitting on the stoop of his house. "I've missed you so much," he hugged her tightly. Ichigo just remained fixated on the girl sitting there, watching.

"Masaya… who is... you're friend?"

"Oh, yes, Ichigo this is Callie, Callie this is my girlfriend, Ichigo Momomiya."

"I've heard so much about you! It's so nice to finally meet you." Her tone was pleasant but something in her eyes wasn't and Ichigo could feel the daggers shooting her way.

"Callie was in England with me; she'd never been to Japan before so I brought her along with me for the weekend!"

"I see."

"Anyway, Ichigo, I'm glad you're here, we need to talk. Come on, I'll take you out for lunch. Callie, I'll be back later, call if you need anything!"

Ichigo couldn't help but notice he hadn't kissed her yet…


	6. Ryou Protects Ichigo's Heart, Pt I

Chapter Four:

"I don't understand…"

"Ichigo, please, try to understand…"

"How… after everything… can you just abandon me, Masaya?"

"I've been offered a full scholarship to one of the best schools in England to study the environment because I've shown so much promise; I can't just turn that down."

"This is it then?"

There was a long pause at the table, silence ringing in Ichigo's ears. This couldn't be happening! Not now, not after she'd waited so long just to see him again… I thought you'd be happy for me, she heard him say softly. She sighed and composed herself.

"You're right… I should be happy for you, but that doesn't mean I can't be sad. Aren't you, even a little?"

Masaya sat there silently, never meeting her eye, but nodded sullenly. Ichigo felt her heart sink; the image of the pretty blonde sitting outside his house flashed across her mind: Masaya-kun had already moved on… he just wasn't going to say it. She stood and turned away:

"Goodbye- Aoyama."

"Ichigo, please…wait…"

His pleas fell on deaf ears as Ichigo walked out of the restaurant, never looking back.

"Akihito-san, you look so cute!" The girls oohed and ahhed as Ayame modeled the pretty orange uniform Ryou had been able to find for her. Ayame giggled and twirled around a few more times.

"Please, everyone, just call me Ayame."

"Well, Ayame, I hope you know what you've gotten yourself into," Ryou said with a grin plastered on his face. He tossed his head in the direction of the front door: Retasu opened it to a flood of young girls and couples that quickly filled every table.

"Ah, Shirogane, how you under estimate me: how do you think I paid for that Master's Degree," she asked with a wink.

It was such a pretty day outside, but Ichigo found she simply couldn't enjoy it. Every part of her felt broken and tired; it was if the world was slowly crashing down on her and the weight was growing too strong to support. She picked up a pebble and skipped it across the small, man-made lake near the center of the park. Make a wish, she told herself as it bounced for the third time. Ichigo was finding it harder and harder to hold back the tears; she thought she could handle it, but she was falling apart at the seams. Her friends were all working and, besides, she couldn't let them see her like this. No, she had to calm herself down at least a little before going to the café. Perhaps she'd wait till they had closed for the day and share the news over a pound of yummy, makes-everything-better cake.

"Ichigo," a familiar voice called out.

"Shirogane, what are you doing here?"

"_Pardon me, but did Ichigo come by here?"_

"_No, haven't seen her," Mint replied between sips; "thought she was with you."_

"_She was but she kind of ran off… I need to find her, make things right."_

"_What happened?"_

_Masaya turned to find a stern faced Ryou staring him down._

"_It's nothing… just… if you see her tell her to call me…"_

"_Not good enough," Ryou said taking a step closer, "what did you do to Ichigo that would have made her run away from you?"_

"_I got accepted into a prestigious school in England and I won't be coming back to Japan, at least not for several years," Masaya finally relented with a sigh. "We sort of broke up over lunch and Ichigo took off."_

"_Leave her alone. If she wants to talk to you she will. I won't be a messenger."_

_Aoyama looked angrily at Ryou for a moment, but the stare-down was brief. Aoyama turned and left the café._

"I see," she said sadly. She put her face in her hands and sobbed openly now. It really was over; she and Aoyama were broken up; he'd be going back to England in two days with some other girl and not coming back.

She felt herself being turned around and pulled against Ryou's chest, his strong arms wrapped around her.

"It's ok, Strawberry," he murmured. "Obviously you just aren't the most important thing in his life, and you should be. Don't let him be yours."

She laughed through the tears: "easy for you to say… even though I'm dying inside, I can't stop my feelings for him." Ryou's response was to pull her tighter in the embrace and rest his head on hers. Ichigo grabbed onto his shirt and held on for dear life as she sobbed against him. Slowly, she became aware that Ryou's hand was stroking her hair: he confused her. Shirogane, her normally obnoxious boss, had these moments where he was…. Well… really kind. The moments were far and few between and always left her feeling somehow happier. She wouldn't question it, for now, she would just appreciate the hand that stroked her hair and the arm that held her close.

"Come on," he said in a more Ryou-like tone, pushing her away slightly, "you'll get all puffy. He brushed the lingering tears away with his thumbs and waited as Ichigo used part of her shirt to wipe her face. "Let's go to the café. You can pig out on some cake with the other girls. Just don't get too big for your uniform—those things are expensive!"

"Shirogane, you JERK!" She hit him weakly on the arm, but he only smiled.

"Oy, I hope you fight better than that in battle!"

"Oh aren't you just so funny," she snapped back, "I'm not going to the café, I'm going home."

"Fine, I'll walk with you."

"I don't need an escort…"

That did little to deter Ryou from walking alongside Ichigo towards her house. Suddenly, as they approached, she was glad to have him there:

"Aoyama…"

"Ichigo…"

Ryou stepped almost in between the two and glared at Masaya.

"Shirogane-san, this does not concern you, please leave us alone so we can talk."

"No," Ichigo said softly, "he stays."

There was a long pause before Masaya finally sighed and walked her way. Ryou moved to stand directly behind Ichigo, never taking his eyes of Masaya:

"Is she you're new girlfriend," Ichigo asked.

There was another pause.

"Yeah, she is."

"You came here to break up with me, didn't you?"

He opened his mouth to protest, but no words came out and he quickly looked back down.

"Aoyama, please leave."

Masaya turned, a look of earnest sadness plastered on his face, and quickly walked away leaving Ichigo and Ryou standing outside, alone.


	7. Ryou Protects Ichigo's Heart, Pt 2

Chapter 06: Ryou Protects Ichigo's Heart, Pt 2

"Thanks, Shirogane," Ichigo whispered. She still had her back to him, fists clenched tightly, slightly hunched over and shaking. Ryou placed a hand on her should but she shook it off.

"Come on, let's get you inside."

Mint quietly sipped her tea, watching as the other girls ran their circles including Ayame. It had been a week and Ichigo still hadn't come back to the café. She sighed. After everything, how could that boy do that to her friend; she turned to find Ryou staring out the front door, seemingly waiting for a certain red-head to come bounding into the café, full of energy and ready to work. She wouldn't be showing up, Mint was certain of that. Enough is enough, she though firmly. Casually, she finished her tea and approached Ryou:

"She's not coming, you know."

"I don't know what you are talking about Mint; and shouldn't you be working?"

"When have I ever—never mind; listen, enough is enough. Ichigo needs to get up and moving and over this Aoyama business."

Ryou turned and looked at Mint a moment:

"You're worried about her, aren't you?"

Mint sighed again , but didn't respond. She stood silently next to Ryou, staring blindly out the doors of the café.

"Go get her, please. She won't put on a brave face for you like she will with us."

"Let it go Mint; Ichigo will come back when she's ready. I'm going for a walk."

As though nothing had occurred, Ryou walked nonchalantly out of the café and disappeared through and out of the park.

Ichigo sighed into her pillow, tears drying on her checks; she wiped at them, but the stains were stubborn. She rolled onto her back and stared over at the picture of them from their first date: she picked up her strawberry shaped pillow and hurled it at the image knocking it to the floor; the image cracked. After everything… when he'd been Deep Blue and ready to kill everyone, she'd been the one to see the Masaya inside; she'd fought valiantly to save that person and he'd turned around and shattered her heart. It wasn't right; it wasn't fair. It had been a week now and she had just finally stopped crying. Her parents had left her pretty much to herself, unsure of what to do to ease her pain and suffering. Her father had muttered something about knowing she'd been too young to date and her mother had scolded him and kicked him out of the room. That was pretty much the last she'd seen of them. Food was left by the door, but Ichigo had little appetite and realized she'd hardly eaten at all during the week. Tired and little weak, Ichigo rolled out of bed and moved towards the door to see if her breakfast was still there.

"So, you are still alive."

"Shirogane!"

Sitting outside the door next to a tray of food sat a stone faced Ryou, watching her as though she might disappear in front of his eyes. Ichigo blushed before realizing how awful she must look. She slammed the door shut and called out to wait a moment. Quickly, she brushed out her hair and threw some clothes on before straightening her bed and reopening the door. Ryou stood there, tray in hand, and pushed past her.

"You're father is going to have a fit if you don't eat something."

"He's gonna have a fit if he catches you in here."

"Right now, they don't care. They're too worried about you to worry about me being callous enough to try something with you. "

"So, what are you doing here," she asked between mouthfuls of food.

"Believe it or not, Mint sent me. She and the others are getting a little worried that you haven't been out of your room in so long. He's not worth it Ichigo, you know that right; I mean, you're not so stupid that you'd let one boy ruin your whole life, right?"

"What would you know about it," she snapped before setting the tray down, hard, on the desk. "You've never been in love and then lost it. You have no idea what it feels like to be so betrayed, to be so broken."

"I don't know what it feels like to be broken?" He cocked an eyebrow and stared her down. Ichigo and shut up and stared back wide eyed. She'd forgotten, momentarily, about his past. She squinted and braced herself for a lecture."

"At least your love was reciprocated. Do you have any idea what unrequited love feels like; what it feels like every time you see the one you love in someone else's arms? You're pain is nothing, Ichigo. You're just being weak and you are NOT a weak person. Suck it up, stop your crying, and come back to work. I expect you there first thing in the morning, got it."

Ichigo nodded but didn't look up; she was too busy trying to conceal a blush. As Ryou stood to leave, a small hand grabbed his hand and yanked him back to the bed.

"Thank you, Shirogane…" she whispered before planting a kiss on his cheek. "You are a good friend."

Ryou stood quickly and stepped back towards the door; he looked down quickly and said he'd see her in the morning before high-tailing it out of her room.


	8. A Day at the Beach

Ichigo sighed and headed to the kitchen for Table six's order. It had been a month since Aoyama had gone back to England and slowly but surely she could feel the pain subsiding; every day hurt just a little less; every morning it was just a little easier to get out of bed; every evening it was just a little easier to fall asleep. Going back to the café the day after Shirogane had visited with her had been the hardest step at all. She was forced to face everyone and start living again. That was Shirogane, always pushing her to do what needed to be done when it needed to be done.

"Akasaka-sama, are the Tarts done yet?"

"Just in time, Ichigo," he smiled in that way of his and Ichigo found it hard not to earnestly smile back. He just had that sort of effect on people, and she needed that shared cheerfulness right now.

"Cheer up, Ichigo. Remember we are all going to the beach tomorrow and it'll be a lot of fun. It'll take your mind completely off of that Aoyama guy," Shirogane said from the corner.

"I'm not upset, I have no idea what you are talking about," she lied, turning with the treats to leave. Unfortunately, in her rush to leave the room, she lost her footing:

"Oh dear, Ichigo, are you okay?" Akasaka rushed over and helped the poor girl to her feet. She whispered an, I'm sorry, and scooped up the plates. "Go on now, Ryou will help you get cleaned up. I'll take care of the order."

Ryou didn't wait for Ichigo to agree; he took her by the hand and led her out of the kitchen, through the café, and up the stairs to the living quarters. From the hall closet, he dug out a towel and wash cloth. He left her standing in the hallway, saying he'd go get her clothes from the locker room.

She had to admit, the warm water felt good as she washed the pastries from her arms and face. Her right knee was beginning to hurt a bit since that was what she landed on first; she was more embarrassed than anything else. Of all people, why did she trip in front of Shirogane? He'd never let her live it down! The water valve twisted off and she stepped onto the soft shower mat; the robe she found waiting was excessively soft and she almost felt inclined to just wear that all day! Cautiously, she poked her head out of the room and scoped the hallways: clear. On the ground, by the door, were her normal clothes in a neat pile. She scooped them up and rushed down the hall to Ayame's room. She was out for the afternoon, so she knew it was safe territory.

I wonder if she's done yet, Ryou thought as he headed up the stairs. He knocked on the bathroom door but got no answer. Maybe she was being nosy… but he didn't find her in his room either. He doubted she'd have gone into Keiichiro's bedroom, so there was only one place left to check:

Ichigo never even heard the knock on the door as she began to strip off the robed to get dressed. Ryou stepped into the room just in time to catch a quick glimpse of a half-naked Ichigo before she screamed and pulled the robe tightly closed again.

"Shirogane, what are you doing in here?" She felt her face growing redder and redder by the second, but then his face was too.

"S. S. Sorry," he stammered looking down. "Was just checking you out, I mean checking in on you," he grimaced at the slip up.

"Get. Out. NOW."

"Going!"

"Ryou, you okay," Keiichiro asked as his younger friend rushed past him towards the lab.

"Yeah, got work to do. Bye."

Keiichiro shook his head and went back to the cake he'd been working on. Those two are something else, he thought with a smile; I wonder what happened this time…

"It feels so good out here!" Retasu smiled, allowing the breeze to tickle her face.

"I can't wait to get in the water," Purin squealed running ahead of the group.

"I just want to lie in the sun," said Mint with a satisfied smile.

"You guys do whatever, but I know where I'm going," Ryou added with a grin. He had his surf board tucked under his arm and had been wearing that smile for the better part of the trip. Ichigo thought back to the previous summer and blushed a little remembering how good he'd looked, how happy he'd seemed, riding on the ocean's waves.

"Ichigo, you should give it a try," grinned Mint mischievously.

"Oh no, I'm good!"

"Why not Strawberry?"

Uh oh… the idea had amused him too.

"Let's go!" He grabbed her hand and yanked her towards the water's edge.

"I'll get the popcorn," said Ayame.

"I'll get the lawn chairs," added Mint.

Keiichiro just laughed.

Ayame blushed a little, surprised at how nice his laugh sounded. He smiled almost constantly, but seldom laughed and she found herself wishing he would more often. He was setting up a small grill near their little patch of beach, preparing to cook up some lunch. Quietly, she joined him.

"Did you remember…"

"Two veggie burgers are in the cooler, don't worry."

"Thanks," she replied with a smile.

They sat there in an awkward silence for a few minutes. Before Keiichiro cleared his throat and looked away to the side:

"I don't imagine you are free tomorrow afternoon…" he cleared his throat again and blushed, "I mean, you're studies could help us maybe interpret some of the alien data we've collected."

"Sure," she answered just a second too quickly., "glad to earn my keep."

"Friends don't have to earn keep," he said with a grin, "but you're help is greatly appreciated. Especially while Ichigo was out from work, I can't tell you how helpful that was!"

"Yeah, poor girl. But she seems to be doing better," she commented looking out to see Ichigo fall off the surf board while trying to stand.

"Spoke too soon.

"Come on Ichigo," Ryou said, smiling ear to ear, just focus on balancing and you'll be fine!"

It took a few more tries, but Ichigo soon found herself able to stand on the board in the shallow water. Before she knew it, Shirogane was helping her paddle towards some of the smaller waves. Standing in the shallows had been easy compared to trying to stand in choppy water. Again and again, Ichigo plunged into the water; Shirogane just laughed at her.

"Like this, Strawberry," he said grabbing her hand; with ease he pulled them both on the board and paddled further into the water.

"What are you doing Shirogane?"

"We're going surfing."

"Out there?"

"No, back at the café."

He kept paddling till Ichigo saw it: a monstrous wave headed their way.

"Ready, Ichigo?"

"Waaa- no way!"

There wasn't really a choice in the matter though; before she knew it she was standing on the board, Shirogane behind her, and flying through the water. Strong arms helped hold her steady as they made their way towards shore. The wind was rushing through her hair now and she could feel it; she could feel the thrill Shirogane felt, and she smiled widely. At the last minute, the board slipped out, and the pair splashed into the water. Both emerged laughing, loud clapping coming from their friends.

A tan school uniform flopped out onto bed, followed by a pair of knee-high stockings and boots. Ichigo plopped down at the dressing table to pull her hair up into its signature pigtails. It seemed like just yesterday summer break had begun and now they were back to school. She hadn't seen much of Miwa or Mowa that summer (both had been out of town much of the time visiting family) so at least there was that to look forward to, but it would be a true test of strength to get through the day without being reminded of Aoyama. She couldn't focus on him right now anyway, this year was important! It was a time to be focusing on grades and entrance exams to high school.

Her elbow bumped a photo on the table and it fell to the ground with a thud. Quickly, she scooped up the precious image and replaced it: it had been taken the previous weekend when the group had gone to the beach together. The five girls had huddled together, Akasaka and Shirogane behind them; Ayame had been kind enough to take the picture for them. She'd learned that sometimes friends and loved ones drifted apart, and though she was learning that the pain would dull over time, she wanted the memories, and the beach trip was one she intended to cherish.


End file.
